


Goodbye, My Friend

by Townycod13



Category: South Park
Genre: Angst, M/M, Onesided
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-07
Updated: 2018-03-07
Packaged: 2019-03-28 10:04:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13901715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Townycod13/pseuds/Townycod13
Summary: Sometimes people leave before you realize they would.





	Goodbye, My Friend

**Author's Note:**

> Beta'd by tankocean!! Thank you so much!! <3

Heartbreak is a strange thing.

It curves from the pain in the mind, through the emptiness in the heart, down to the nausea in the stomach and plays all sorts of games along the way.

Loneliness is an old friend, the will to get by will beckon, hoping that the victim can be talked off the edge of pain.

It’s the reality of that pain that will twist its way up inside until nothing ever feels the same.

Smile.

He needed to smile.

He knew he needed to smile because any other reaction would be unacceptable. He had to be  _ acceptable _ .

“That’s great. I’m happy for you.”

Where had his voice found its strength? He couldn’t breathe.

It hurt too much to be tolerable.

“Thanks, Kyle!”

That smile was sunshine.

So happy and unhampered by the tornado of emotions ripping apart his innards. Kyle tried to replicate it on his own face.

Whatever was on his face he couldn’t feel it.

It was sweet. As sweet as Stan and Wendy. Childhood couple all grown up and looking to move in together.

Kelly.

She barely seemed real to Kyle. The majority of her relationship with Kenny had been long-distance. Kyle couldn’t even put a fucking face to the name.

He’d never thought they were all that serious.

But Kenny was leaving town to be with her.  _ Leaving _ .

“I’m going to finish out this semester but after that me and Karen are out of here.”

It was serious. So serious that the girl had agreed to move in with her boyfriend and his younger sister.

That sounded like marriage serious.

“Karen’s going to love it in California. We found this great charter school next to our apartment with this amazing computer science program.”

They were old enough that marriage wasn’t out of the question. He never thought it would be Kenny that left though.

Kenny was  _ leaving _ and not a note in his voice sounded remorseful. It was as though leaving his home of the passed eighteen years meant  _ nothing _ to him.

Kyle was getting mad. He could feel the anger bubbling up. Where was Stan? He needed the guy to play interference. Stop him from saying something awful. Making a rift between himself and the orange clad boy when they had such a limited time left together.

“That sounds amazing, Kenny. I’m happy for you. Does Kelly still call you Danny?”

It could have sounded teasing and sweet. It was clipped and tense. An accusation.

The happiness in Kenny’s face didn’t even  _ twitch _ . He was so over-the-moon about his post-grad plans that he couldn’t even see Kyle’s aggression build.

Something that was normally a skill of Kenny’s. Reading the mood. Calming Kyle’s temper before he really lost it. Listening to him calmly when he did. Was he just sick of it? Dealing with Kyle’s shit? Everyone’s shit? Was that why he was leaving?

“She does actually!” he was laughing, “It’s a joke now. Kind of a nickname. It’s really sweet the way she—“

He didn’t want to listen to this.

He  _ couldn’t _ listen to this.

It was too much.

“I’ve gotta go, Kenny. I’ll… I’ll see you later. Again, I’m--” completely broken inside, “—really happy for you. I just forgot something. I’ll see you later. Gotta go.”

He was halfway down the block before he noticed the repetition in his words.

He hadn’t thought—he’d never even considered going out with Kenny. It didn’t seem like an option. Not with someone that probably viewed him without a shred of romantic intent.

It shouldn’t have even mattered. He could just stay in South Park and still be close friends and they’d never have to broach the issue of Kyle’s feelings. It would be enough.

The idea that Kenny had gotten serious about someone in the meantime was so sickening he wondered if this was why Stan used to vomit at Wendy.

The potential of heartbreak burning through his veins and attempting to expel the contents of his stomach. It was too much.

Kenny McCormick was going to leave South Park to move in with his girlfriend on the West Coast. He was happy to go and giddy at the prospects it offered Karen.

Kyle wondered if any custody issues would come up but he’d known the McCormicks a long time. It was doubtful they’d fight to keep their daughter and even if they did, Kenny looked better on paper at eighteen then they did at their age.

The world was changing and he couldn’t keep up.

His world felt completely altered.

When he finally made it home his eyes were dry despite the entire trip spent with unshed pain welling up in them. He settled for curling up on his bed and willing himself to stop caring.

After all, Kenny clearly didn’t.

 


End file.
